Chinese President Xi Jinping arrived in New Delhi on Saturday to attend the 18th BRICS Leaders’ Summit, marking his first visit to India since 2019.
Xi was accompanied by Cai Qi, a senior Chinese Communist Party official, and Foreign Minister Wang Yi, according to China’s state-run Xinhua news agency.
His previous visit to India came in 2019, before a prolonged military confrontation between Chinese and Indian forces along the disputed Ladakh border. The standoff lasted more than four years and pushed bilateral relations to their lowest point in decades.
Relations between Beijing and New Delhi have gradually improved in recent years. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited China last year, while both countries have taken steps to restore high-level diplomatic engagement.
Invited by Modi, Xi will participate in the two-day BRICS summit on Saturday and Sunday. He is also expected to meet Modi later on Saturday for bilateral discussions.
The summit brings together leaders from Asia, Africa, the Middle East and Latin America to discuss global trade, economic cooperation and major regional and international issues.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian are among the other leaders who have already arrived in India for the meeting.
The expanded BRICS group consists of Brazil, China, Egypt, Ethiopia, India, Indonesia, Iran, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa and the United Arab Emirates. Several countries, including Malaysia, Nigeria, Thailand and Vietnam, also participate as partner nations.
The previous BRICS summit was held in Rio de Janeiro in 2025, while China is scheduled to host the next summit in 2027.
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